NCS soccer roundup: Campolindo boys have flair for the dramatic

The Campolindo High boys soccer team's season may have started with very few expectations. Now, it seems like a season of destiny.

The third-seeded Cougars, down by two goals with four minutes left in regulation, scored in the 76th minute and again in stoppage time to tie the game, then again in sudden-death overtime to earn a 4-3 victory over host and No. 2 seed Ygnacio Valley in the North Coast Section Division II semifinals on Wednesday.

With just four minutes to go, sophomore Preston Kilwien took over. He scored on a free kick to make it 3-2, then he scored the game-winner six minutes into overtime, placing it just under the cross bar.

The Cougars will play No. 4 Concord in Saturday's title game as they seek their third Division II section championship in six years. Concord beat No. 8 St. Mary's in the other semifinal 1-0.

"We didn't think this was possible when the season started because the team was so young," Campolindo senior captain Kian Maghsoodnia said. "To be in the semifinal was an honor, to be in the final is a dream."

Maghsoodnia scored the tying goal just before sudden death, and was mobbed by his teammates as the Cougars (18-7-2) erased 2-0 and 3-1 deficits.

Mario Mendez scored the first two goals for the Warriors (15-5-5), both in the first half, and Antonio Zumaya's tremendous goal in the 55th minute made it 3-1.

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De La Salle 4, Freedom 0: The top-seeded Spartans will be seeking their fifth straight NCS Division I title after knocking off the 12th-seeded Falcons in a semifinal match.

De La Salle (17-3-6) was unrelenting in the first half, creating numerous opportunities and finally breaking through on a header by Jack Karleskind in the 20th minute.

In the 32nd minute, Tommy Lisiak, who assisted on the first goal, scored on a left-footed laser.

"Our last two games were really close and we weren't playing like a No. 1 seed or how we ended the season," Lisiak said. "Freedom had been playing hot and we knew we had to put it out quick before they gained too much confidence."

Two more goals came in the second half, one from sophomore Joey Jones and the other from senior Nic Bob as De La Salle did not take its foot off the gas.

The Falcons (14-10-2) were never able to get settled into the game, nor were they given space nor time to build up play.

De La Salle will play San Ramon Valley in Saturday's championship. It is a repeat of last year's Division I final, and it will be the third time in five years the two teams have met in the title game.

San Ramon Valley 2, California 0: The No. 6 seeded Wolves (18-6-3) got second-half goals from Matt Friedler and Matt LaBrie as they bested the No. 7 Grizzlies (18-7-2), their East Bay Athletic League rival, in the NCS Division I semifinals.

After a scoreless first half, the Wolves scored on a cross by Alex Maestre from the left to Friedler, who hammered it home in the 68th minute. Wolves keepers Tim Wraith and Connor Tetzloff combined on the shutout.

-- Matt Schwab

Girls soccer

San Ramon Valley 3, Castro Valley 0: The host Wolves got three first-class goals and a commanding second-half effort in a win over Castro Valley in the NCS Division I semifinals.

Morgan Idso, Alexa Vandevanter and Summer Stamates all scored for the top-seeded Wolves, who swarmed all over the No. 4 Trojans over the final 40 minutes.

Seeking a section-record seventh title, the Wolves (19-0-5) have 12 players headed to Division I colleges. But Castro Valley (20-4-2) gave them a test, especially in the final 10 minutes of the first half.

"Our team, we really did put them away," said Vandevanter, who is headed to Cal. "We had a great halftime talk, and we wanted to go to the finals so bad, and we could not be any more excited."

The Wolves will face Monte Vista in Saturday's championship at Dublin High. Monte Vista beat Berkeley in a shootout in the other semifinal.

Vandevanter scored on a header off a deft cross by Alyssa Alarab from the right side, making it 2-0 in the 63rd minute. Stamates received a pretty through ball up on the right from Stanford-bound Megan Turner and rounded out the scoring on a breakaway in the 73rd minute.

The Wolves led 1-0 in the 14th minute on header goal by Idso into the near corner off an Allie Dutto corner kick from the left. Idso set up the sequence with a strong turn and a shot that was deflected into the side-netting, forcing the corner.